Tilly, Penny and Jacob had made their way to the cut. As they were walking they saw a blonde woman dressing in a green skirt and jacket and a hat who was making her way to Garrison, "She's clearly not from here," Jacob commented from beside Tilly, his arm wrapped around her shoulders.
"What gave it away? Her outfit or the fact she's walking alone and towards the Garrison with no fear whatsoever?" Tilly asked, looking at the woman with an eyebrow raised.
Penny looked behind her to see the boys' she beat up earlier before Tommy caught them. "Guys?" she called, tapping Jacob's arm discreetly.
"What?" he asked looking behind him. "Fuck."
"What do we do?" Penny asked once again.
"Run?" Tilly suggested. "You haven't got your cap, I forgot to get Finn to get my gun and your knuckles are fucked," she pointed out, panicked as the boys' got closer.
Penny shrugged from the other side of Jacob, "Sounds good to me, I hope you can run fast, T." The trio didn't waste another second walking at leisurely pace instead Jacob grabbed Tilly's hand and began running, following after Penny.
The two boys that were following the trio began running after them and past them since they hid in an alleyway. The three of them hiding in the shadows, Jacob still holding onto Tilly's hand, this time tighter when they watched the two boys stop in front of the alleyway, looking around.
"Where did they go?" one of them asked, getting closer to the alley which made Tilly's breath hitch and press herself further against the wall, closing her eyes. The footsteps got heavier and closer causing Jacob to pull the two girls down so they were crouched as he watched the boy get closer to them and Tilly grip onto his hand even tighter than he was holding hers. Both Penny and Jacob hated seeing Tilly scared hence why they made it known that they were her protectors.
The brunette boy who had the black eyes and broken nose, Tilly had recognised as Ralph Booker, he had tried and failed many of times to get Penny to date him but the blonde wasn't having any of it so he moved onto Tilly as an attempt to make Penny jealous. It didn't work which only angered the boy, Tilly wasn't interested in any boy that wasn't Jacob. He was the only one she ever wanted.
When Jacob learned about Ralph's plan to try get with Penny, he laughed and thought the boy, Oliver who was Ralph's best friend, was joking. He then learnt he wasn't so went into protective brother mode and went to any and all lengths to keep both Oliver and Ralph away from Penny and made sure that Tilly was either by his side at all times or away from the boy.
Oliver had noticed the trio who were crouching but didn't say anything, he didn't agree with his friend's methods to get Penny's attention if anything he was on Jacob's side but would never admit it. "I think I've just seen them go back towards the Garrison," Oliver told the brunette and watched as he nodded and made his way back out the alleyway towards the Garrison not caring if Oliver was following or not.
"He's gone, he won't bother you again," Oliver swore to the trio after Ralph was out of earshot. "He's gone about the whole getting Penny's attention the wrong way and I don't agree with him but I don't want to get beat up for disagreeing with him."
Tilly's eyebrow's furrowed in confusion, "You knew we were here the whole time and didn't say anything?"
"Yeah, quite frankly I don't want to be on the receiving end of either of Penny, Jacob or Ralph's punches," the boy smiled slightly. "They look like they hurt."
"Why are you still friends with him then if you don't agree with what he does?" Penny asked, dusting the back of her pants off. Tilly and Jacob doing the same except with one hand.
The brunette teen shrugged, "He threatened me and it's not like anyone else would be my friend after everything he does."
Jacob looked at Oliver, "Are we invisible? Everyone at school is more scared of us than Ralph, given the fact Tilly's a Shelby."
"And Tommy lurks around like a creep to make sure I actually go so if you ever come to your senses and realise that Ralph's a dickhead, you know where to find us," Tilly told him, smiling at him.
"Thank you," he smiled back at her, "I better go find him before he comes back."
After both boys had gone Tilly let out a sigh of relief and then slapped both Penny and Jacob on the arms, "You're both idiots, why didn't we just go back to the Garrison or something? There's blinder's everywhere."
"Ow!" the two exclaimed, rubbing their arms.
"Stop being babies," Tilly rolled her eyes. "How do we go about avoiding Ralph when he's gone to the Garrison and we need to walk past there to get to my house?"
"We go to mine then before school finishes go to the cut and act like we've been to school," Jacob stated, solving their problem.
"You can explain to your mum why we're not at school because I'm not doing that again," Penny chimed in.
"She's not in, think she's working," Jacob told her.
"Thought she hired that girl?" Tilly asked.
"She did but then she didn't show up for work so my mum fired her," he answered.
"She didn't hire T, did she? Because she hardly shows up to the betting shop and she lives next to it," Penny asked making a dig at Tilly.
"Shut up," she rolled her eyes.
"Can we just go? P can walk past the bakery and see if she's there," Jacob asked getting annoyed with the girl's bickering.
Penny nodded and made her to the bakery with Jacob and Tilly following, miles behind with the boys arm slung around Tilly's shoulders again.
The three walked in silence until Tilly broke it, "What if she sees us?"
"She won't," Pen disagreed, shaking her head. "Oi!" she shouted towards a blinder that was walking down the street, opposite side to them. The man looked at the blonde then to Tilly and made his way over to them.
"Don't tell Tommy you saw us and let me a borrow your cap, I'll give you it back," Penny asked the blinder who was not much older than Tilly, he was nineteen or twenty.
"Why?" he asked.
Jacob let out a sigh of annoyance, throwing his head back, "Just give her your fucking cap and follow us so you actually get it back."
The blinder looked unsure but his anxiousness made Penny roll her eyes, "Look, we wouldn't ask if our lives didn't depend on it because quite frankly if his mum catches him, he's dead which then means she'll tell my mum and I'm dead so please?"
"Fine, where are we going?" he asked and followed after Penny, "Walk past that bakery and look at who's working, if it's a woman with black hair nod your head and if it's a man shake your head, okay?" she instructed him. "We'll wait here, now go."
"Wait, I thought your dad was in America?" Tilly asked.
"He was, he came back and mum took him back, don't know why he's still a cunt," he said, rolling his eyes.
Penny tapped their shoulders, silently telling Tilly to shut up and stop talking about Jacob's mum and dad, knowing it wouldn't end well and only end in an argument which Pen wouldn't take sides on because Tilly didn't have to ask but then again Jacob didn't have to answer so it's both of their faults if it ends in an argument.
They watched the blinder shake his head meaning Jacob's dad was working and not his mum, "Let's go," Penny said.
They snuck past the bakery with their heads down and pretty fast. They then took the shortcut way which meant they were walking through a series of alleys, "Why are alleys so scary?" Tilly asked, shuddering slightly.
"Probably because they're dark," Jacob responded.
Tilly was already on edge about being in the alley but even more so when she remembered about the Irish Inspector and considering Tommy treated her as if she was his own she was suspect number one and they would use her to get to Tommy.
"Til?" Jacob shook her from being wrapped up in her own thoughts.
"What?" she asked and noticed Penny was nowhere to be seen. "Where's P?"
"I told her to go unlock the door, what's up?" he asked, his hands having made their way to cup her cheeks, leaning down slightly to look into her eyes.
"You can't laugh at me if I tell you," Tilly replied.
"Why would I laugh at you?"
"Because I'm scared, and not just of the twenty alley's we have to go through to get to yours but of the Inspector, you and P get into fights for fun. You both sound like Tommy and I can't- no I won't lose you, either of you-" Tilly went on to explain.
"You're not going to lose me or P, okay? We'll stop the fighting for no reason and we'll stay off the Inspectors radar, okay?" he asked and she nodded.
Jacob kissed her forehead still holding her cheeks while Tilly reached up to hold his wrists before they made their way to Jacob's house, now holding hands.
Penny was walking around Jacob's bedroom looking at his schoolwork that he'd 'forgotten' about, she didn't know whether he genuinely couldn't do it or he just didn't want to either way he had left it on his desk and didn't plan on moving or filling it in anytime soon. She would offer to help but it would only ever end by Jacob saying he knew what he was doing but just didn't have time to finish it and he'd do it later or he'd just ask Pol to help him when he goes to see Tilly.
"What are you doing?" Jacob asked making the girl jump and stop doing his homework for him.
"Helping you because you're stubborn and won't ask for help," she shrugged giving him a pointed look which Tilly laughed at.
"Right, uh thanks," he smiled. "We'll stay here until half past one because my dad closes the bakery at two and I don't want to be here when he gets back and then make our way back to the cut to teach Tils self-defence and walk her home."
Penny gave the boy a thumbs up, while she was finishing her up his homework while Tilly nodded and laid on his bed staring at the ceiling.
After half an hour, Penny had finished Jacob's homework and Tilly was sat reading her copy of Little Women that she had left at his house a few weeks ago. The brunette had shown up at Jacob's one night, her book held tightly with she stood there with red, puffy eyes and tears staining her cheeks. He then learned that she had an argument with Ada. When Tilly argued with Ada it hurt her more than she'd ever let on, Ada was the one person she looked up to the most (besides Pol), Ada turned the girl into her mini me and defended her name to their brothers even when she wasn't there and Tilly did the same when someone said anything bad about Ada.
Jacob was nowhere to be seen which Tilly only realised when she'd finally put her book down.
"Where's Jake?" she asked Penny who was sat at the desk but was now nowhere to be found. She looked around in confusion and looked to the clock which read quarter past one. With her book tucked safely in arm she stood up and made her way down the stairs. "P? Jake?" she called as she moved down the staircase, holding onto the banister.
"Guys?" she called again. "Hello?"
As she got to the bottom of the stairs she looked to the door where she heard footsteps getting close she panicked and ran back upstairs to hide in Jacob's room.
"Til?" Jacob shouted from the bottom of the stairs.
"Where have you been?" she hissed. "I thought you were your mum or dad."
"Sorry," he apologised and she made her way down the stairs once again only this time she stayed downstairs and snatched the lollipop from his hand.
"Shouldn't you three be at school?" a voice asked over the fence making the three stop dead.
"It finished early," Penny answered sending the woman a tight-lipped smile. The woman would most likely snitch on them to Edith, Jacob's mum who would then tell William, Jacob's dad meaning he'd get grounded and then Edith would tell Mary, Penny's mum meaning she would get grounded.
.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.
As they were walking to the cut they saw Finn who was carrying Jacob's hat while looking for the three of them. "Finn?" Tilly shouted, getting his attention which made him run over to them.
"What happened?" she asked, placing her hands on his shoulder. "And what have I told you about running with caps?"
"Don't?" he said with a smile. "Tommy sent to get you because Arthur and we need to go to home." he panted.
"What? What's wrong with Arthur?" Tilly asked.
"It's bad, Til. The Inspector beat him up," Finn told her. "Tommy said I needed to come get you three because he doesn't want you out and about."
"How did he-" Tilly started.
"We need to go now," Finn interrupted her grabbing her hand so they could run back to the house, Jacob and Penny following after.
When they got to the house, Finn flung the door open and everyone looked at the four of them, Tilly gasping at the sight of her eldest brother, gripping onto Finn's hand tighter and pulling him to stand in front of her to stop him from moving any closer.
John, Ada, Pol and Tommy all stood around Arthur. Arthur looked to Tilly, "I'm alright, Tilda. Don't worry."
"You don't look alright," she commented looking at brother who was covered in blood and bruises.
Jacob placed his hand on Tilly's left shoulder while Pen placed her hand on the girl's right shoulder, both squeezing her shoulders.
"He said Mr Churchill sent him to Birmingham," Arthur spoke while staring at Tommy and coughing. "National interest, he said. Something about a robbery. He wants us to help him."
"Thought we didn't help coppers?" Tilly asked.
"We don't," John sniffed.
"He knew all about our war records, said we're patriots like him. Wants us to be his eyes and ears. I said..." he hissed as Pol wrapped a bandage tightly around his injured wrist. "I said we'd have a family meeting, take a vote."
Silence fell over the room as everyone's eyes went from Arthur to Tommy.
"Well, why not? Hmm?" Arthur asked, his temping rising making Tilly grab onto Finn tighter. "We've no truck with Fenians or communists. What's wrong with you?" Arthur asked, his head moving towards his family. "What the fuck is wrong with him lately?"
"If I knew, I'd buy the cure from Compton's chemists," Pol commented, leaning back in her seat, her eyes never leaving Tommy.